Sustained robust growth from Indian travellers forecasted in 2018, according to m1nd-set

INDIA. The outbound Indian travel market is expected to grow +8% both in Asia and globally in 2018, according to a new m1nd-set report.

The Swiss research agency reported +7% growth from Asian airports in 2017, and a +6% increase globally.

Source (all charts): m1nd-setClick on image to enlarge

The report has been published via m1nd-set’s Business 1ntelligence Service (B1S). It predicts that India will climb from third to second place in the ranking of travelling nationalities to Asian airports in 2018. A rise from sixth to fifth place will take place for airports globally, it forecasts.

The B1S report also reveals the destinations which will benefit most from the increase in outbound Indian traffic over 2018. Latin America and the Caribbean, currently the destination with the least arrivals from India with less than 1% of the market, will see the biggest rise with +27% growth in Indian arrivals next year.

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Travel to the Middle East, the largest destination for Indian travellers with 31% of the Indian outbound market, will increase by about +4% next year. Europe will see a small +1% increase. Africa will experience the most significant fall in traffic, with a -24% decline over the next 12 months. Destinations in Asia Pacific will see a moderate decline of -4%, m1nd-set said.

The top five departure airports for Indian travellers are New Delhi, Mumbai, Dubai, Singapore and Chennai. It is predicted that Singapore will see a -11% decline in outbound travel by Indian travellers over the next 12 months. The other four airports will see strong growth – New Delhi (+7%), Mumbai (+3%), Dubai (+13%) and Chennai (+12%).

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The report also reflects on shopper behaviour among Indian travellers. It notes that they have a higher than average proportion of “rational pre-planners”, “price sensitive shopping lovers” and “inspiration seekers” compared to other Asian nationalities. “There is a quasi-equal balance between planned and impulse shoppers among Indian travellers with 53% planning their duty free spend compared to 47% buying on impulse,” the report states.

M1nd-set CEO and owner Peter Mohn commented: “Indians are the second largest outbound market after China for destinations in Asia and so an important market to study, given the significant growth forecasts.

“This latest Indian traveller report has highlighted a number of interesting findings, both on the 2018 traffic forecasts and the shopper behaviour. We continue to see gifting as a key shopping motivator for Indian travellers, while the interest in seeking vouchers and special promotions is in decline both compared to previous years and to other key travelling nationalities.”